


Discovery

by intheinkpot



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-26
Updated: 2012-07-26
Packaged: 2017-11-10 19:35:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/469887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/intheinkpot/pseuds/intheinkpot
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Henry finds his mother after returning home from the hospital.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Henry paused in the doorway of his room, listening to the faint sounds of Snow White and Emma making dinner in the kitchen, and stared at the huddled figure sleeping in his bed with her back to him. Swallowing thickly, Henry closed the door behind him and crept around to the other side of the bed. Tear tracks were still visible on Regina's face. Henry's heart twisted when he realized she must have cried herself to sleep. How long had she been here, sleeping in his bed? The Blue Fairy had told her to run, and everyone assumed she had. No one, not even Henry, had thought to look for her at home. He had checked her room quickly when he first came upstairs, and her bed had been untouched as had her clothes. He had just thought she hadn't come back at all...

 

"Mom," he whispered. She hated it when he shook her to wake her up. "Mom, wake up."

  


Regina jerked, eyes snapping open. "Henry?"

  


He placed a finger to his lips. "Emma's here. Snow White is with her. We can trust Emma. Wait here while we have supper, okay, and I'll come get you once Snow leaves."

"Henry..." Regina gripped his shoulder, eyes searching his for something. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Gaze darting to the door, he said, "Have you been here the whole time? What if someone found you?"

Regina shook her head. "No one would come looking for me here." She frowned, squeezing Henry's shoulder to get his attention. "What are you doing here? I thought Miss Swan - "

"Emma said there wasn't enough room at Snow White's apartment so we could stay here," he said, shrugging. "She said it would be best for me." The frown on Regina's face lessened, and he knew he'd soothed her ire. She might not like the idea of Emma staying at their house, but if it was for him, she wouldn't be mad. 

She really did love him, he realized. He'd already known that, mostly, from the hospital. Those had been real tears in her eyes, anyone could tell, but he thought that might have changed after magic had come back to Storybrooke. But no one had seen even a glimpse of Regina or Rumpelstiltskin in the three days since. Until now, of course. 

"Why have you been hiding here?" he asked. "You have your magic back. I expected you to do...something."

Regina hugged him. "There's nothing to do but make sure you're safe. Rumpelstiltskin will be coming after me, and he may use you as leverage. I've been keeping an eye on you with my magic." It was then Henry noticed the mirror laying on the floor beside the bed. She must have put a spell on it like the one she had back in the Enchanted Forest to be able to spy on people. Except it didn't seem like she was doing any spying. Unless she was lying, she had spent the past three days watching over him. Henry shifted in Regina's arms. He didn't know how he felt about this.

"You're the Evil Queen," he said. Regina tensed, pulling back to look him in the eyes but not letting go completely. "You need to be brought to justice. But...I don't want you to die. Snow keeps saying it's what you deserve, and Emma doesn't know what to do. I don't think she wants you dead either. She's just scared. Now that the curse is broken, she doesn't know how to be the White Knight." He glanced down at his shoes. "Emma read the book. She made me understand some things I hadn't before, and I get it now. Why you did those things. It's not right, but I understand now." His eyes stung, and he raised his head to meet her gaze. "You need help, Mom. Let me and Emma help you. Please?"

Regina took a deep, shaky breath. She covered her mouth, muffling a sob. "Henry..."

Henry flung his arms around her neck. "Please, Mom."

He felt her nod against his shoulder. They both stilled when they heard Snow call up the stairs that dinner was ready. Henry pulled away. "I'll be back."

Regina nodded, already pulling herself back together into the calm and collected image she always projected. He tried not to be too disappointed; this mission was going to be even harder than getting Emma to believe. He would have to come up with a code name for this operation soon. Pausing with his hand on the door handle, he said, "I'll bring Emma up as soon as Snow White is gone, okay?"

"Yes," she said. There was a tremor to her voice that comforted him, though he couldn't say why.

He turned the handle and cracked open the door. "I love you, Mom."

Regina smiled - a real smile that made him think maybe she would be okay after all. "I love you too."


	2. Chapter 2

"Oh, wow," Emma said. When Henry told her he had something to show her (and to please not be mad), she thought maybe he had brought in a stray dog or spilled grape juice on the carpet or something. She hadn't expected to find Regina perched on the edge of Henry's bed; her eyes were rimmed red, and she wasn't wearing makeup which made her seem younger and more vulnerable. 

  


"Do close your mouth, Miss Swan," Regina said, glancing her up and down. 

  


Emma frowned. 

  


Henry nudged Regina's knee with his elbow and frowned. "Mom, you said you'd let us help you."

  


Regina pursed her lips. "You're right, Henry. I...apologize, Miss Swan."

  


"Emma. Call me Emma, Regina. No more of this 'Miss Swan' crap." Emma stepped inside the room. "What are you even doing here?"

  


"Where else am I supposed to go...Emma?" Regina cocked an eyebrow. "Everyone in this town wants me dead."

  


"That's not true," Emma said. But if she thought about it, it was probably true. Snow White wanted Regina to die. Whether Snow had it in her to kill Regina herself was another matter, but Emma had no doubts that Snow would be pleased to find out Regina had fallen off a cliff or been eaten by a pack of wolves or mauled by a bear or some shit. Emma looked away from Regina. "I don't anyway." 

  


"Don't you?" Regina said coolly. "Because of my actions you grew up without a family."

  


"You also raised Henry when I couldn't," Emma said. 

  


"I killed Graham."

  


Emma's insides seemed to turn to ice. Henry flinched away from Regina. "You killed Graham?" Emma said, feeling tears prick her eyes, and rage made her voice waver.

  


"Yes," Regina said. If Emma hadn't been looking for a reason to try and help Regina (for Henry's sake because she knew that's what he wanted), she would have missed the flash in Regina's eyes; flash of what, Emma didn't know, but it gave her pause. The way Regina rolled back her shoulders and straightened up seemed a bit too bracing, like she accepted she was going to be attacked and wouldn't stop it. Emma closed her eyes, balled her hands into fists and jammed them in her pockets. Taking a few steady breathes, she wondered why this threw her so badly when she had always suspected that Regina had something to do with Graham's death. Hearing her suspicions confirmed must have just made all those feelings come rushing back, she supposed.

  


Henry shuffled from foot to foot, watching her nervously. He had told Regina that she agreed to let them help her: that was why Henry had brought her up here, and she couldn't disappoint him again, not after he had been right about the curse all along.

  


"What do you want me to do, Henry?" Emma asked, ignoring Regina until she could get a handle on her emotions. "How are we supposed to help her?"

  


Henry worried his bottom lip. "I dunno. You're the White Knight, Emma. I'm just...me." He shrugged helplessly. Regina put an arm around his shoulder and pulled him against her side, murmuring something in his ear. Henry rested his head against her shoulder.

  


"I was afraid you'd say that," Emma muttered. She sighed. "Okay." She fixed Regina with a glare. "I'll help you. But we're doing this my way. So first off, no magic." Regina frowned, appeared to teeter on the edge of disagreeing and then seemed to think better of it. She nodded curtly. "Good." Emma took a moment to think about what else she would need Regina to do. "Second, you obviously can't leave the house so we'll need to end whatever is between us and get along."

  


Regina raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Henry furrowed his eyebrows. "What's between you?"

  


Emma shrugged. "I dunno. All this fighting." She slid her hands into her pockets. "We'll have to get you a new phone and get Henry one too so that we can keep in touch. We'll need to be able to call or text you if someone decides to drop by unexpectedly. And you'll need to stay in the bedroom when someone comes over, and the curtains need to be drawn at all times because the last thing we need is for someone to look in the window and see you." She paused. "Do you have any, you know...casual clothes?"

  


Regina frowned. "Of course, Miss Swan. Just because I don't parade around in wife beaters and faux leather doesn't mean I don't have casual clothing." 

  


Emma ignored the jab - it was weak at best - and said, "Is there anything you need me to get? Books or something?" 

  


"I'll be fine, Miss Swan. I wouldn't want you to overexert yourself." Regina smirked.

  


Emma bit her tongue to keep from saying anything. "Fine. It's been a long day. I'm going to bed." Well, after she had a nice cold beer or two, but she wasn't going to admit to that in front of Henry or Regina. "I guess I'll take the couch or something. The one in the office is comfortable so...yeah. I guess I'll be in there if anyone needs me."

Emma left the room and headed down the stairs towards Regina's home office. She turned when she heard footsteps. Henry wrapped his arms around her waist and squeezed her. 

  


"Thank you, Emma," he said. "I knew I could count on you."

  


Emma allowed a small smile to curve her lips. She ruffled his hair. "No problem, kid. I just hope this works."

  


"It will," he said, and he seemed so certain that for a moment, Emma believed they that might actually be able to pull off rehabilitating the Evil Queen.


End file.
